Blanketing the city with creative ad placements.

• Position: Branding/Awareness - Brief article

Institution: FirstBank, Denver

Asset size: $11.6 billion

Agency: TDA, Boulder, Colo.

The city of Denver was blanketed earlier this year with outdoor ads associating First Bank's brand with smart small-business banking.

The bright orange ads appeared on light rail trains, taxis and pedicabs, among other locations. The campaign was designed to showcase the idea that a potential business could start Or grow with a helpful hand from the right lending institution.

At Denver's 16th St. retail complex, a tree-lined pedestrian promenade, banners hung from storefront windows teasing, "Coming soon: Your Second Location," "The Wait is Over," and "Now in Denver," and finally, one carrying the campaign tagline, "Business Starts and Grows With 1STBANK." Street teams hand out sunny shopping bags from "Your...